


Old Shadows and New Beginnings

by ratonnhhaketon



Category: Overwatch (Video Game), Video Games - Fandom
Genre: F/M, Fluff, One Shot, Prefall Gabe implied relationship, Reaper needs more fluff so I am delivering, and yes he has curly hair in his reaper form, sorry i don’t make the rules
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-29
Updated: 2019-08-29
Packaged: 2020-09-28 23:13:23
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,382
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20434049
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ratonnhhaketon/pseuds/ratonnhhaketon
Summary: A cold-hearted killer visits his love from the past and discovers life-changing news.





	Old Shadows and New Beginnings

The soft sound of pen scribbling on paper filled the small apartment. The stack of papers grew smaller until she could finally stop for the night and say she was finished. She stood, stretched, and grabbed the mug off the desk. The bitter taste of cold coffee was one she welcomed without question.    
  
It was well over midnight and she was wide awake with nothing left to do. Her eyes were strained from all the paper work so reading until falling asleep was out of the question. She sat down on the windowsill and stared into the city. The hustle and bustle of the city below was vastly different from her apartment. Sirens and car horns could be heard, thousands of lights from the surrounding buildings could be seen, and, if she opened the window, she knew there would be a very thick smell of meat from the restaurant on the opposite street.    
  
Vaguely, she heard a rustling sound. It sounded far, near the front door of her apartment. Any other person would have been terrified for their life, but she wasn't. She knew exactly what, or who, it was and had been expecting to come face to face with them sooner or later.    
  
She waited until the sound got closer. When it was outside her door the rustling of wind changed to heavy boots and the sound of a door being pushed open.

After the footsteps stopped she spoke up. "I'm surprised it took you this long to find me," she said as she stared out the window, not sparing the figure behind her a glance. "If you're here to kill me, just get it over with. I'm sure you have other agents you need to be going after that are much more important than me."   
  
"Now, is that any way to treat a guest?" his deep voice rang out. God, it was nothing like she remembered. Was there anything left from the man she knew, or was he entirely just a bloodthirsty monster?    
  
She turned towards him. "Oh I'm sorry, were you expecting a welcome party? Some cake? Balloons? Well then, I apologize. Sorry to disappoint."    
  
He really didn't look anything like his old self. A white mask covered his face, talons extended off his leather gloves, and several slings of shotgun shells were hung over his body. The longer she looked at him the more she knew the man she once loved was truly not standing in front of her at all.    
  
This time it was his turn to observe. He noticed the small glitter of light on her left hand as it rested against the mug's handle. It felt like she had been given it years ago, and by someone other than himself. His old self wasn't even who he would consider "himself" anymore. He was different now, a ruthless killer set to hunt down and eliminate all of Overwatch, not some commander in love.    
  
"Why do you still wear that?" He questioned, arms crossed over his chest as if he was scolding a child for misbehaving.    
  
Before she even had the chance to reply, a loud cry came from the baby monitor on the table. "Oh, perfect." She sighed, resting the empty mug on the windowsill before pushing past the man in front of her. She made a beeline to the room across the hall and opened the door to reveal a nursery. Inside the white crib was a baby, no more than a year old, crying her lungs out. He watched the woman pick up the infant, lightly bouncing and soothing them.   
  
"Gabby, please go back to sleep honey." She cooed softly. The child was certainly not hungry or in need of a diaper change. It was simply one of those nights where she just repeatedly woke up without reason.    
  
Gabby? "Is she..." he trailed off, knowing the woman in front of him would know what he meant. She simply nodded and turned away to focus on getting the baby back to sleep.    
  
Soon she was fast asleep and able to be put back in the crib. He moved out of the doorway to let her shut the door and followed as she went back to her office. There were many questions that he needed answered right away. "Why didn't you tell me?" He sounded angry, confused, and almost sad.    
  
"I was going to when I found out." She paused for a minute to turn towards him. "That was the day you died. Gabby and this ring are the only thing I still have left from the man, the  _ Gabriel _ , I knew and loved. And I know for a  _ damn _ fact that he isn't anywhere in the monster standing in front of me." She felt tears prick at her eyes and turned away. He couldn't see her cry, she wouldn't let him see that side of her. If he did end up killing her she would die with dignity, not sobbing over her lost love.    
  
She heard a light hiss and the sound of something being set on the table behind her. "Mi amor, I'm right here," he said lightly.    
  
With those words, that phrase she longed to hear, her body forced her to turn. He was different but somewhat resembled himself. His bright brown eyes now blazed red, his smooth skin covered in scars, and his white teeth were now pointed and fang-like. But his beard was still just as thick, his hair was just as curly, and a single ringlet still fell slightly off center onto his forehead.   
  
"Gabe..." was all she could muster. She crossed the small space between them, putting a delicate hand on his cheek and caressing the skin. He leaned down and kissed her through the tears falling from her eyes. It was slow, passionate, and needy. It had been so long since their bodies last made contact, and neither one of them wanted to forget the feeling.    
  
They only parted when she needed to come up for air. Their foreheads rested together and she looked at him with a soft smile. “I’ve missed you,” she whispered.    
  
He placed a delicate kiss on her nose and smiled down at her. “I have missed you too, mi amor.” She rested her head against his chest and his hand pressed against the small of her back. The two of them stood like that for a few minutes, enjoying the presence of each other.

After a while she pulled back. She wiped her tear stained cheeks with the back of her hand before asking, “So why are you really here?” 

He sighed. “I mostly wanted to make sure you were okay… and to see if you had moved on.” 

She smiled a half smile. “Even if I tried it would be damn-near impossible. We spent almost a decade together before you proposed, that’s not exactly easy to let go of.” She looked into his eyes and saw something, an almost scared expression. “There’s something else, isn’t there?”

He removed his gloves and set them next to his mask on the table. His calloused hands took hers. “I wanted to ask you to join Talon.” She parted her lips to speak but he didn’t let her. “Please just let me explain before you say no.” She nodded in agreement. “I know that you’re technically still working for Overwatch, but if you’re in Talon I would be able to have you close to me again. I could make sure that you and Gabby were safe at all times and I could help you take care of  _ our _ daughter.” He made sure to put emphasis on ‘our’ to make sure she knew he was serious about taking care of his family. 

She looked down, processing all of the information and considering her options. He spoke up again. “I can personally make sure that you have your own private lab, and Moira is already working with us if you ever need her help. We could certainly use your expertise.” 

After another moment she nodded. “I can’t believe I’m agreeing to this, and I have no idea how I’ll explain this to anyone, but for Gabby’s sake, I’ll join.” 

He replied with a wide smile and a lingering kiss to her lips. “Thank you so much, mi amor.” 


End file.
